The Adventures of Monk's Vineyard - The Great Loop and Beyond: March 24, Day 272 – Lake Worth (North Palm Beach) to Peck Lake, Jupiter Island

We planned a 9:00 a.m. departure this morning. We had a few anxious moments as, when Linda tried to raise the anchor, nothing happened. Gerry tried the windless from the flybridge, but it didn’t work there either. He went down below and fiddled with a few things, but no luck – the windless would not work. Then, as luck would have it, he noticed the chair in the cabin had been pushed against the circuit breaker. Reset that and, Voila, all fixed.

We headed up the Intercoastal. We went under several bridges, none of which had to be opened for us to clear. We passed by some very beautiful homes in Hobe Sound. According to the guide books, this is a colony of the very rich who shun publicity and large crowds. Access to the community by land is practically impossible, but since the waterway is not restricted, you can ogle as you cruise by.

We had decided to try and anchor in Peck Lake for the night. We say try because the entrance was reported to have a sand-bar that was only 4 feet deep. We draw 4 feet, so there was no margin for error. We followed Second Star and managed to squeak in. Once in, there was plenty of depth. From the anchorage it was a very short dinghy ride to the shore and then only a few yards over the dunes to the beach. It was a very nice spot. We walked the beach for awhile, explored the area in the dinghy and then back to the boat.

We had dinner on board, watched the sunset, did a few chores and then off to bed.

Heading out from the anchorage

Approaching the Parker Bridge. Usually this bridge opens every half hour. However, because of construction it was closed for the next 2 hours. Thankfully, we fit under okay. It was a little crowded with the barge and tow.

We spotted a golf course along the waterway. First one we've seen for awhile.

Much of the Intercoastal in this stretch had nice homes along the side like this .... not huge, but nice (but well out of our price range)

.... but there were a few that looked like this ... trailer house vintage (still out of our price range)

However, there were many more that looked like this

Bridge opening ahead

We saw this classy old boat named Coastal Queen

.... and this one with an interesting name. Maybe that can be our new Mantra.

A nice home on the point

.... and another

Oops !!! Who forgot to close the through hull or was it a broken hose??

Some nice landscaping next to the water's edge

Passing under another bridge

This was an interesting sign .... a free house, if you buy the property. Of course, the house wasn't much to speak of (still out of our price range)

This house had a "piece of the rock" in front

Lots of the homes had ornate statues in front ... like this

... or like this

Here's a house being built. Maybe if you act fast you can pick out your appliances

A shot of the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse

This local marina that specialized in fishing charters had an appropriate mural painted on the side of the building

This was a nice home, although not as big as many in the area. However, it looked more like it belonged in the Austrian Alps .... well, except for the boat parked in front.

Another nice golf course. Second one we passed today. This one's in Hobe Sound so it's probably very exclusive.

In the anchorage. Here, in front of Monk's Vineyard was a boat with 2 dogs, very anxious to get off. We talked with the owner later, who was flying a Looper flag but had never made the complete trip. He has lived on the boat since 1994, with most of the time being spent at anchor. Wow!! Not sure we could do that.

The guys on the beach. Wonder what they're talking about. Since they were longingly looking out at the boats in the ocean, it undoubtedly had something to do with fishing.